Shares Of Major Platinum Miner Fall After Massacre Of Striking Workers That Has Left 34 Dead

Essentially, strikers have been off the job since August 10, when they started demanding more pay, and then this week police used deadly force against them to end the strike.

According to AP, the estimated death toll has risen to more than 30 (UPDATE:Bloomberg cites police who now peg the number now at 34).

Paul Murphy at FT Alphaville notes that the stock is off about 20% since the strike began, and down another 3% today. He also suggests that investors might still not be pricing in the gravity of this kind of massacre. The mine isn't going to pen again for awhile, and the ramifications for the broader industry could be significant.

For more background on what the strike is really all about (incredibly low pay, brutal conditions, and lack of representation by the workers union), read this piece by Greg Marinovich in the Daily Maverick.

There's grim video of the massacre. At the 1:25 mark, you can see exactly how the strikers were mowed down. Discretion is advised.